Salt N' Pepper

Aashiq Abu's 2011 Malayalam film begins with a phone call to the wrong number. Kalidasan, who loves food, and Maya on the other end get to know each other by talking about cooking, and grow close without ever having met. Food is at the centre and is not decoration. Recipes, scenes of preparation and details of Kerala cooking are placed inside the narrative; the characters come to know each other through it. It is counted among the works that opened the way for food films in Malayalam cinema. That the characters are middle-aged and do not fit the physical mould of romance is its second distinguishing feature. The pair played by Lal and Shweta Menon build a relationship outside the terms of young love. The telling is light and brisk. Who it's for: those who like food-themed romantic comedy and the new generation of Malayalam cinema. Who it's not for: viewers expecting intense dramatic conflict; the film keeps its problems light.